


Pastel Charms!

by mahou_shoujo_positivity



Category: Original Work
Genre: Eventual Romance, Fluff and Angst, Friendship/Love, Gen, Happy Ending, Harm to Children, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Character Death, LGBTQ Themes, Magical Girls, Slice of Life, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-11
Updated: 2019-12-28
Packaged: 2021-02-17 23:23:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21751408
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mahou_shoujo_positivity/pseuds/mahou_shoujo_positivity
Summary: Kaede Arakawa was an ordinary, socially awkward elementary schooler. She didn't have many friends and her home life wasn't ideal. To cope with her situation, she would make up stories about girls her age that suddenly became heroes and fought for the sake of everyone around them. Those comics she drew were a source of comfort for her.But what she didn't expect was to suddenly wake up inside one of the worlds she herself created. She is told that she is needed in order to protect this familiar world, but is that true? Can she really become a hero, just like the stories she loved so dearly?
Comments: 4
Kudos: 15





	1. Chapter 1

She held her newest work at arm’s length, a proud smile on her lips.

This was definitely her greatest creation, and the one she took the longest to complete. The time she spent in it was all worth it, was what she thought as she continued to admire every single trace of her pen making up the characters, dialogue and background.

What she had drawn was the first chapter of an original story she had come up with of her favorite genre ever: magical girls! Seemingly ordinary young girls that, through one mean or another, gain the ability to use magic and sometimes they have to protect the world with it.

She had drawn it as a part of a school’s newspaper, an idea she had for a while but never had put it into practice. She had put up a few posters at her school asking for help with the project (with the permission of the principal, of course) but unfortunately no one had been interested. But that was fine! The weekly newspaper was going to be great, even if she was the only one doing it!

As her eyes scanned the pages over and over, searching for any mistakes she might have missed, a high-pitched voice suddenly broke the silence:

“It’s time for school! It’s time for school!”

Her smile softened at the reminder. For once, she was incredibly excited to go to school. She could even imagine how it all was going to go down: She would arrive, show her class her completed project, they all would be impressed by her art skills and dedication and then everyone would want to be her friend and keep reading the newspaper every week.

Before she could fantasize too much, her alarm clock was growing impatient. The longer she took to turn it off, the louder it would get. As the voice grew too obnoxious, she finally snapped out of her thoughts and gently pressed the button on top, successfully calming it down.

“Thank you.” She answered it softly, feeling ever so slightly silly for talking with an object. However, considering she was alone, she couldn’t bring herself to care all that much.

She quickly put on her school’s traditional blue and white sailor uniform as she hummed one of her favorite anime’s theme song under her breath. To complete the look, she tied her chestnut hair into a simple ponytail.

After studying herself in the mirror and approving of what she saw, she folded all the pages in her hand neatly, put them carefully inside of her backpack, and left her room.

Before closing the door, she took one last look behind her and sent a small wave to the plushies settled on her bed.

“I’ll be back soon.” She promised them.

As she descended the staircase leading to the living room, she heard the familiar sound of her dad’s loud snoring. A pained look crossed her face for a second, before she forced herself to smile and move on.

No. She refused to feel sad now. Nothing was going to ruin her excitement for today.

She continued towards the kitchen, pondering what to make for breakfast. It had to be something quick to make, considering she spent most of the time she had before school adding the finishing touches for her new and improved comic.

After a lot of thinking, she finally decided on omurice. After how much effort she put into making her project as perfect as possible, she decided that treating herself to one of her favorite foods wouldn’t hurt. Even if she arrived a little late because of it.

She made two large portions, one for herself and the other for when her dad finally woke up.

With a sigh at the thought of her father, she gulped down her meal as quickly as she could and rushed towards the front door.

She put on the shoes already waiting for her and left.

“I’m leaving!” She called out needlessly as she was closing the door, though she knew she wouldn’t get a response either way.

But still, she smiled.

Today was going to be great!

With hunched shoulders and glazed over eyes, she arrived home.

“I’m back.” She told no one in particular, voice cracking.

As soon as the front door closed, she sprinted towards her bedroom without even bothering to take off her shoes. Her dad would probably lecture her later, but at the moment she didn’t care.

She threw herself on her bed and finally let out all the emotions she had been holding. She hugged one of her plushies as tight as she could and started weeping.

Nothing had gone according to plan.

She made it to the school ten minutes late, but she wasn’t worried. Her teacher for the first period was a kind elderly woman who she got along well with, so she was confident she would be spared from any punishment, especially considering this was her first time being late in a few months at least. However, she was extremely unlucky, as the teacher seemed to be in a bad mood on that day and forced her to stand on the corridor. Not the worst punishment ever, but it was still incredibly embarrassing for her.

But as she was standing there all alone with her thoughts, she remembered the extra weight on her backpack and immediately cheered up.

Yes, this situation wasn’t ideal, but she was happy and nothing could ruin that for her.

Or so she thought.

As break time rapidly approached, she grew more and more impatient, causing her to mess up a lot throughout the day. Mostly getting caught while daydreaming. That kind of situation wasn’t new to her, but it did make her morning worse and worse.

_“Arakawa-san.”_

_No response._

_“Arakawa-san!”_

_Nope._

_“KAEDE ARAKAWA-SAN!”_

She winced as she recalled all the times she had been yelled at in only a few hours. She couldn’t help it! She was so excited for lunch time and all the wonderful things that would happen during it, she couldn’t possibly pay attention to any of her boring classes!

So when the time finally came and she heard the bell ring, she was ecstatic. Her stomach was complaining, but as she would have to spend the entire break distributing each newspaper, she wouldn’t have time to eat anything, but that was a sacrifice she was willing to make.

“Please read this.” She handed out each paper with those same words, because she knew she was too awkward and if she tried and explained more about her project, she would definitely say something weird that would obliterate any and all desire her classmates may have of reading it.

As she was handing out the papers, she observed that most people would completely ignore it and leave it aside as they continued on with what they were doing before. Disappointed but not discouraged, she kept on giving them to everyone until her whole class was covered.

But, as she had forgotten to count them when she was printing them, there were still a few papers left even after she was done. Exactly five papers were left. ‘Maybe this is a sign.’ She thought as she gathered the courage to leave the classroom and go to the one next door.

She knocked softly on the wooden frame before entering. “Excuse me.”

Some students glanced at her and nodded in greeting. Others didn’t even acknowledge her presence. But she paid them no mind. Her destination was somewhere else.

She looked around the room until her eyes found her targets. There, seating in the back by the window were them. Her muses. The ones the main characters of her story were based off of.

She wasn’t sure why they were the ones she was inspired by. She didn’t even know their names. Most of what she knew about them was what she found out just from observing them from a distance.

But there was something so… Intriguing about them. They were best friends; she could at least guess that. They were always talking and laughing together. She had never seen them apart.

Maybe that was the reason why she chose them. Because she wanted a friendship like that. Was the strange feeling she got when around them envy? Maybe so.

She timidly walked up to them and _she_ was the first one to notice her presence. Momoka Hamasaki. Of course, that wasn’t really her name. That was just what Kaede called her in her head. And also the name of the main character in her story.

“Do you need something?” ‘Momoka’ asked ~~coldly~~ warmly, gaining the attention of the ones around her as well.

“U-Um, I…” She lost all her composure, and suddenly she had no clue what to say. Why was she so nervous around them??

“Spit it out.” ‘Mao’ ~~demanded~~ encouraged.

“H-Here!” Kaede shoved the stack of papers into Momoka’s hands. “Please give it a read when you have the time!” She forced the words out and attempted a cheerful tone, but by the look on the girls’ faces she didn’t do a very good job.

“Hmm…” ‘Suzume’ inched closer and examined the cover. “School’s newspaper, huh?”

Kaede only nodded, her gaze glued to the ground.

“Did you do this yourself?” ‘Chinami’ asked, looking ~~disinterested~~ interested.

Another nod.

‘Setsuko’ flipped through the pages until she reached the comic she worked so hard on. She started laughing. “Hey, guys, look at this!”

They all inched closer and then started laughing too. A few of their classmates stared at them.

Kaede lifted her head up and furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. What was so funny?

Momoka wiped non-existent tears from her eyes as her loud laughter dissolved into snickers. “A magical girl story? How old are you, five?”

Kaede felt like her heart had shattered then and there.

She tried to think of a comeback, but all that came out of her mouth was a squeaky “Huh?”

“Oh no!” ~~Suzume~~ One of the girls exclaimed dramatically. “She’s also retarded!”

Her friends laughed louder.

They came up with some more insults, but she didn’t want to remember them.

Before she knew it, streaks of tears were running along her cheeks. She ran away without looking back, and only stopped when she was home.

And now here she was, hugging a plushie of an anime mascot to her chest and sobbing so hard she started to hiccup.

She couldn’t believe she had been so stupid! She had imagined how friendly they were just by their appearances, when in actuality they were nothing like the characters she created. She had even blocked off some of their reactions at first, hoping she was only imagining the way they were looking at her. Like she didn't matter at all. 

She wished she could rip her entire story to shreds, but now there were numerous copies in her school and there was nothing she could do about it.

With that thought in mind, she fell into a deep sleep.

And she would never be prepared for what awaited her when she woke up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading the first chapter of my original magical girl story! I hope you liked reading it just as much as I liked writing it!  
> Sorry for ending it that way, but I promise that things will get better for Kaede-chan.
> 
> Also, English isn't my first language, so if you find any typos or mistakes, don't be afraid to correct me!
> 
> Until next time~


	2. Chapter 2

The first thing she noticed when she woke up was a throbbing headache.

The second thing she noticed was someone calling her name repeatedly. It was a voice she didn’t recognize, and yet somehow, it felt so incredibly familiar.

She slowly opened her eyes, expecting to be faced with her bedroom ceiling. However, the moment she did, she had to squint them as she winced for looking directly at the sun.

Wait… Huh?

She sat up as quickly as she could, not expecting to be hit with a wave of nausea and dizziness for doing so. Where was she? She was just in her bedroom, why was she now outside?

“Calm down, you haven’t fully recovered yet, ~susu!” The same voice from before called out, worry lacing their words. Kaede only grew more confused. Recovered from what? And why did that person’s way of speaking make her feel so nostalgic?

She looked around, searching for someone else besides her, but was unsuccessful. Before she could panic even more from hearing a disembodied voice, the person spoke again:

“Down here, ~susu!”

Kaede lowered her gaze closer to the ground, only to find something so unexpected, she was at a loss for words.

Standing there, right in front of her, was not a human. It was a completely different creature. They were bipedal and mostly white in color. Their right eye was a light shade of gold, and their left eye was silver. They had comically large dropped ears way bigger than their head that reached just above their neck. Their soft-colored gold ringed tail was curled around their body in a defensive stance. To top it all off, they had a gold and silver polka-dotted bandanna wrapped around their neck and a small silver bag across their body. 

She recognized the critter the instant she laid her eyes on them. “B-Bliss?”

They were the mascot of her most recent story. The one who guided Momoka and her friends on their journey to save the world. The character she created with all her love was actually alive and talking to her!

Bliss nodded solemnly, apparently not concerned at all at her knowing their name. “So you _are_ Kaede-sama, ~susu.”

She was going to ask why they were referring to her so respectfully, but before she could, she had a sudden realization. She was asleep before she found herself in this place, which could only mean… She let out a relieved sigh, even though a part of her was immensely disappointed.

This was all a dream.

Bliss seemed to notice her change in attitude, but their only reaction was to slightly tilt their head to the side with a curious glint in their eyes.

So how do you get out of a dream, again? Oh, right!

She pinched herself on the arm as hard as she could and let out a whimper in surprise at the pain she felt afterwards. She looked around her once again, hoping that now she would wake up in her bedroom like she should, only to realize that nothing had changed. So she pinched herself again. And again. And again.

Finally, Bliss let out a small gasp, reaching out to hold her arm in their tiny paws. “Stop, ~susu!” They gently pressed onto the place where she had hurt herself, causing it to start emitting a slight glow. “Kaede-sama, why would you do such a thing, ~susu?” In her turmoil, Kaede did not notice how the soreness on her skin instantly disappeared.

“Why…” She started saying, only to pause to clear her dry throat. “Why can’t I wake up?”

“Because it’s not a dream, ~susu!” They tried reassuring her, but they could tell she wasn’t convinced at all. Bliss stayed silent for a few moments, perhaps pondering about what they could do or say to calm her down. After a few seconds of silence, their eyes lit up. “Come with me, ~susu.”

She stared at them in indecision. Should she really follow a stranger in a place she didn’t know? But Bliss wasn’t really a stranger, were they? And besides, if this really was a dream, it didn’t really matter if something happened to her in it, now did it? She focused back on Bliss, just to notice they were looking at her with pleading, puppy-dog eyes.

With a defeated sigh, she hesitantly got up and gestured at them to lead the way.

The beaming smile she got in response made everything that may happen to her worth it.

They had to be walking for at least an hour. If not, it at least felt like it to Kaede. She had asked multiple times where they were going, but Bliss had answered every time with:

“You’ll see, ~susu!”

She considered herself a very patient person; however, taking into account she was still suspicious of the creature in front of her, they were not doing themselves any favors by being vague.

After accepting that Bliss wasn’t going to reveal their destination, she started to space out as her mind went back to the events that had occurred before she fell asleep. She still felt incredibly stupid for believing that those girls would like her story, even though she had not exchanged any words with them before. That was probably her biggest flaw, she supposed. She would often fall so deep into the land of daydreaming that she would forget how the world around her actually was.

Perhaps that was why she was having such a weird dream. It wasn’t like she hadn’t had a dream about her stories before, but this one was different in one thing: she was actually interacting with a character. Previously, she was only a bystander that watched as the scenes went by, closely resembling a movie. So now that she could actually feel the world around her, she was at a loss for what to do.

And then there was Bliss telling her this was reality, not a simple dream. Despite knowing they were extremely trustworthy (she created them, after all. There was nothing about them she didn’t know) she couldn’t bring herself to believe their words. After all, this could be just her mind playing tricks on her after she spent too much time completing her project, even pulling all-nighters. The probability of this being just her tired mind recreating what it was most used to seeing was very high.

Before she could end her thought process, she almost ran into Bliss after they abruptly stopped on their path. She muttered a small apology and turned to look at what had them so enraptured.

It was a small brick house, with nothing too eye-catching about it. It was cute, she had to admit, but it certainly wasn’t something to drool over. Despite that, Bliss looked extremely excited, like a little kid at a toy store.

“We’re here, ~susu!” They announced, gesturing dramatically at the house.

“Um, and whose house is this?” She asked, confused. She didn’t expect their journey to end in such an underwhelming way.

“No idea, ~susu!” They replied cheerfully. She gave them a deadpan look, to which they giggled. “But it belongs to someone very important, ~susu.”

“How so?”

“Well, for starters, I can sense an incredibly strong aura coming from there, ~susu.” They puffed out their chest, looking proud of themself.

“…And that’s why we’re here?” She had a bad feeling about where this was going. Bliss didn’t seem to notice, simply nodding at the question. “Why?”

“We have to convince them to become a Pastel Charm, ~susu.” They stated matter-of-factly.

“Oh, okay.” A few seconds passed as the gears were turning in her head. “Wait, what?!” She exclaimed when she finally processed what they were saying.

They simply shrugged their shoulders at her surprise. “That’s right, ~susu. The enemy is approaching, that’s why we need to gather all five Pastel Charms, ~susu.”

The enemy? Do they mean Lord Umbra, the villain she created to be defeated by the heroines?

As if reading her mind, Bliss added in a whisper: “Lord Umbra is nearby, ~susu. I have been feeling his presence for a few days now, ~susu.” They looked around them nervously, as if expecting someone to jump at them at any second. “That’s why I summoned you here, ~susu.”

“You… summoned me?” This was crazy. She was just dreaming, that’s all. A dream that was taking a long time to end, but that’s it. She wasn’t summoned by anyone, nor was there a big bad guy waiting to attack her as soon as they could.

“For some reason, I have a feeling that I can’t do this without you, ~susu.” Bliss continued, not noticing the inner turmoil Kaede was facing. “And my gut feeling is never wrong, ~susu!” Then they looked down, looking slightly sheepish. “Will you help me protect this word, ~susu? Please, ~susu?”

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself down.

Fine. She was going to do this. Dream or not, Bliss said that they need her help, and who was she to refuse? She already felt so close to them, even though they just met. Sure, it was probably because she created them, but she’d like to pretend that it was because they were destined to be friends. From now on, she would try to believe them about being summoned and stuff.

So she nodded, determination burning in her eyes. “Okay.” She agreed with certainty.

Bliss looked back up at the affirmation with a relieved smile on their face. “Thank you, ~susu! I’m so happy, ~susu!” They started doing a little dance in circles around her.

She giggled at their silliness. This was the first time in a while that she had an honest conversation with someone. It wasn’t exactly like she expected, being in another world and all, talking to a magical creature, but for her anything goes at this point.

Bliss stopped in front of her and jumped into her arms, still beaming from ear to ear. “Let’s go complete our first mission, ~susu!”

“Yeah!” She agreed, hugging them tighter. She felt like she was holding a teddy bear.

“And so, you will befriend whoever lives here, ~susu!” They pointed at the brick house she had completely forgotten about, still looking enthusiastic.

“Yeah!"

“No, wait-”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you once again for reading! I introduced another main character this chapter, Bliss. They're the team's mascot.
> 
> Anyways, I hope you're enjoying the story so far!


	3. Chapter 3

“But what if I mess up?”

“You won’t, ~susu! Believe in yourself, ~susu!”

They were having this back-and-forth conversation for a while. Kaede sharing her insecurities and Bliss trying to encourage her. They were getting nowhere at this rate.

Kaede still hadn’t recovered from being rejected by her muses only a few hours earlier. She decided she wouldn’t get her hopes up ever again. She wouldn’t be optimistic and fantasize about things that would never happen either. She didn’t want to feel as awful as she did when she heard fake-Momoka’s words, so she had made up her mind: she didn’t need friends. She would be alone forever.

To their credit, Bliss was being very patient with her. Although they did not understand what was so difficult about befriending someone, they not once mocked Kaede for her self-doubt. They just tried everything they could to make her feel better. It wasn’t working, but it’s the thought that counts.

Before they could reach a conclusion, the door of the small house suddenly opened. Immediately, Bliss went limp in Kaede’s arms, most likely pretending to be a stuffed animal.

She froze too, but for an entirely different reason.

Out of the house came a girl that looked about her age. She had short red hair. On each side of her head, she had a braid that started at the top, down to her chin and back up again. Her eyes were a pretty bubblegum pink that shone with undeniable happiness. She was wearing a simple white blouse with a flower patterned pink and red skirt. She had a bright smile on her face and it was easy to see her dimples.

In Kaede’s eyes, she was the very definition of beautiful. And familiar.

There was no doubt about it: standing in front of her was the protagonist of her story: Momoka Hamasaki.

Before she could even think of trying to hide, their eyes met. Momoka’s face showed her surprise, before turning into pure excitement. She quickly made her way to Kaede and hugged her.

Kaede stiffened even more than before, for a second not knowing what to do. Because she was the one who made her this way, she knew that hugs were a way of greeting for Momoka and that she didn’t understand the meaning of ‘personal space’. She forced herself to relax in her embrace, hesitantly hugging her back.

Momoka was the one to pull back first. “Hi! I’m Momoka Hanasaki! What’s your name?”

“K-Kaede Arakawa.” She replied, not being able to contain the stutter in her voice.

The other girl looked thoughtful for a moment. Then she nodded in approval. “Kaede-tan, right? That’s a really pretty name!” She then added: “Just like you!”

Kaede knew she was blushing like mad at the compliment. “T-Thank you.” She should have seen it coming, but she was still taken aback by Momoka closing their distance like it was nothing. She was very happy on the inside, however, for it had been a long time since someone referred to her so casually. She adored the nickname as well.

“You’re new here, right? I can show you around!” She offered, extending her hand towards her.

Perhaps befriending Momoka wouldn’t be as hard as she thought.

She hesitated, but only for a second. Then she shyly placed her hand on hers and gave it a small squeeze. “Okay.”

The bright smile Momoka showed her in response could even rival the sun.

It was emotionally and physically draining for her to be around Momoka.

She had not let go of her hand yet and was dragging her around the small village she lived in. Sometimes she would stop and explain something about a building or greet someone they met on their way, but she would quickly go back to running around, seemingly without a clear destination.

And Kaede loved every second of it.

Sure, it was exhausting, but it was a good kind. She was so used to being alone in her room that getting that much exercise and seeing so many new people was making her head spin. But she would still pay attention to her rambling about herself as they ran. Most of the things she was told she knew already, like how Momoka was the same age as her (eleven years old), how she lived with her grandparents, how she couldn’t decide her favorite color because she loved all of them, and many other random things.

But what had Kaede so intrigued was the place itself. It wasn’t in her story at all. She was sure she had drawn the girls living in a crowded big city, not a tiny village where everyone knew each other. She felt like such a fact had to have some kind of significance, but she preferred to think about it later. Right now, she was busy trying to keep up with everything Momoka was saying.

“-And there’s only one school here because it’s such a small place.” She continued, not even pausing to breathe. She looked back at her with one of her signature beaming smile. “That means we’ll be classmates, too!”

Kaede looked away awkwardly. “Um…” She stopped in her tracks, to which Momoka looked at her quizzically. “I’m not living here.”

“Oh.” She didn’t think she ever heard so much sadness in a single word.

She didn’t like that look on Momoka’s face. It didn’t suit her at all. “But I’m visiting! And on vacation! So! I’ll be here a while!” She said with fake enthusiasm, trying her hardest to cheer her up. Someone as sweet and hyper as Momoka shouldn’t have to feel sad. Ever.

As if by magic, her grin reappeared even brighter than before. “Okay! I’m gonna make this is your best vacation ever!” She promised, squeezing the hand that she was still holding. “And what better place to start than to visit the best bakery ever?”

Kaede returned her smile. “Lead the way.”

As soon as she opened the door, a mouthwatering smell invaded her nostrils.

It was a small and cozy shop, but that was to be expected when it came to the village. It was pleasantly warm inside. Momoka picked a seat for them close to the showcase, so they could chat and decide their order at the same time.

Kaede gently placed Bliss on the top of the table, turned towards the pastries so they could admire them as well. She wondered if they were doing alright, standing still and pretending to be a plushie for so long couldn’t be easy.

“What’s their name?” Momoka suddenly asked, observing them closely.

“Bliss.” She responded nervously as she was afraid they were going to be found out.

Momoka reached out and shook Bliss’ paw with her index finger and thumb. “Nice to meet you, Bliss-tan!” 

“U-Um, so what are we eating?” Kaede quickly tried to change the subject, hoping she would take the bait.

She stared at her with an unreadable expression, but it was gone at the blink of an eye, replaced with her usual grin. “How about we get a little bit of everything so you can pick your favorite?”

“Sounds like a plan.”

They ate a lot, laughed a lot, talked a lot. Well, Momoka talked a lot. Kaede mostly just listened.

Everything was going smoothly until it was time to pay.

Kaede reached into the backpack she was still wearing. Luckily she always had a small portion of her allowance on her in case of emergencies. But as she was handing the money to the cashier, he just stared at her hand in confusion.

“I’m sorry, miss. But we don’t accept that kind of money here.” He furrowed his eyebrows, still looking puzzled. “I’m actually not even sure what kind of money that is. Where are you from?”

Obviously, she started to panic. What do you mean they didn’t use the same currency? They were supposed to use yen, she was sure of it! Yes, they weren’t in the city they were supposed to be at, but they should still be somewhere in Japan, shouldn’t they?

“I’m so sorry!” Momoka’s voice snapped her out of her distress. “We were playing a game earlier; my friend here must have accidentally mixed up her real money and the fake money from the game!”

“Oh, is that what happened?” The cashier laughed and patted Kaede in the head. “It’s okay; just try not to make the same mistake again.”

Kaede nodded in agreement, still dumbfounded. And so Momoka paid for both of them and they exited the store.

A tense silence washed over them before Momoka finally spoke:

“So… Are you going to tell me what’s going on?” Her arms were crossed in disapproval, but there was still a slight smile on her face. “Of course, you don’t have to. I just would really like to understand.”

Kaede stared at her, mouth hanging open like a fish. “I-I have an option?”

“Of course! What kind of friend do you think I am?” Momoka looked indignant now, pouting. “I trust you, Kaede-tan. If it’s something you can’t tell me, I won’t pry.”

“You… Trust me?” She looked even more bewildered. “But we’ve only just met.”

Momoka giggled bashfully. “I guess so. But it feels like I’ve known you forever!”

Kaede nodded with a smile. How could she _not_ tell her when she was being this sweet? She took a deep breath and started: “So, the thing is…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we finally meet our pink leader: Momoka! 
> 
> Stay tuned for the next chapter~


	4. Chapter 4

Kaede told Momoka everything. From when she first started writing her story to her meeting with Bliss. She left out a few details, though. Like her talk with her now ex-muses and how humiliated she felt, as she deemed it unimportant to her current situation.

Momoka quietly listened, nodding here and there to show she was paying attention. She was unexpectedly happy when Bliss dropped the teddy bear act, and was now hugging them tight like a little kid, refusing to let them go. They didn’t seem to mind the affection, however.

When Kaede finished her bizarre tale, Momoka started waving her hand in the air, like someone asking their teacher permission to speak.

“Yes, Hamasaki-san?” She made her voice go a pitch lower to imitate an adult, a teasing smile on her face.

Momoka rolled her eyes fondly in response before her face turned serious. Kaede gulped audibly, anticipating all kinds of bad reactions from her. She could be quite intimidating when her smile was nowhere to be found.

“Does this mean it’s your fault I’m so bad at studying?”

Kaede blinked once. Then twice. After taking a few seconds to process the question, laughter suddenly escaped her throat. She kept laughing to the point her sides started to hurt. It wasn’t that funny, but she was so relieved Momoka didn’t _actually_ seem mad or upset, she couldn’t help it. Momoka pouted, but she could tell she was trying her best not to smile.

“Stop laughing, I’m being serious here!” She complained, but it was made completely null and void as a few giggles escaped her.

“Sorry, sorry. I was just expecting a different reaction.” Kaede wiped a few tears with the back of her hand and grinned at her.

“Yeah, well…” Momoka looked away with her arms crossed and a pout back on her face. “…Couldn’t you just have made me super smart or something?”

Kaede shook her head, amused. “That’d make you way too perfect. The story would be boring.”

She gasped, placing both hands on her cheeks to hide her blush. “I didn’t expect you to be such a flirt, Kaede-tan!”

“I-I wasn’t- I didn’t mean-” She fumbled with her words, her face turning as red as a tomato. 

Momoka giggled. “I know. I’m just teasing you.”

Bliss, who had been quiet for an alarmingly long time, finally spoke: “I’d hate to interrupt your bonding, but don’t you think we have more important matters to discuss, ~susu?” They sounded nervous, fidgeting with the bandanna on their neck.

“Oh! That’s right!” Kaede was having so much fun; she had forgotten the reason for her being around Momoka in the first place.

Momoka stared at both of them with a confused look.

Bliss stood up straight and cleared their throat. “Momoka-sama, will you become a Pastel Charm and help us protect this world, ~susu?”

“Pastel… Charm?” She repeated, intrigue showing in her features.

Kaede nodded. “They are magical warriors that transform into a cute costume and-”

“I’m in!”

“Wait… Really, ~susu?” Bliss looked just as shocked as she was. “It’ll be very dangerous, ~susu.”

Momoka grinned in excitement. “I get to help people _and_ look cute while doing it? Count me in!” She then held Bliss’ tiny paws in her hands and looked into their eyes while hers twinkled with anticipation. “Can I do it now? I wanna see my outfit!”

“I guess if you really want to I could-” Bliss sighed, looking troubled. Before they could finish their sentence, however, Momoka cut them off:

“Really? Yay!” She started to jump around like a very energetic bunny. “How do I do it? How do I transform?”

They gave her an awkward smile, rubbing the back of their neck nervously. “I’m actually… Not sure, ~susu.”

Kaede turned her head towards Bliss so fast she felt a bit nauseous. Why didn’t they know? In her story, they were kind of like a guide to the girls, always knowing what to say and what to do. So why was this Bliss so clueless? Did something happen to them? Did they lose their memory???

She did not voice these thoughts aloud, opting to stay quiet about it for the time being.

She instead turned to look at Momoka, who looked incredibly disappointed. She was immediately hit with the feeling that she had to do something to wipe that frown off her face.

“I just know it has something to do with these, ~susu.” Apparently Bliss felt it too, because they continued, looking to cheer her up. They reached their hand into their small bag and somehow pulled out a collection of heart-shaped pocket watches.

They were simple, yet beautiful. The outside was painted in a shiny silver and it had a few delicate details in gold. The numbers on the inside were roman, and each of the watches had a different color for them. Pink, blue, purple, green and yellow.

Momoka gently took one of them from Bliss, the pink one, and spent a few moments admiring it from top to bottom. Finally, she raised it in the air and shouted: “TRANSFORM!”

Nothing happened.

“Please?”

Nothing at all.

Kaede was feeling extremely anxious about this. She had never seen those pocket watches in her entire life and it worried her. If they were truly supposed to be transformation items, then there was something horribly wrong with this world. The items she drew were indeed the same colors, but that was where the similarities ended.

She was too distracted to notice Bliss and Momoka exchanging a concerned look.

“Hey, Bliss, isn’t it risky for us to be talking about this out in the open?” Momoka questioned _very naturally_.

“T-That’s right, ~susu! How could I have been so foolish, ~susu?!” Answered Bliss, just as naturally. They lowered their voice to a whisper: “We need a secret base, ~susu!”

“Secret base…?” That finally snapped Kaede out of her thoughts. It sounded like such a super-hero thing to have; she couldn’t help but get a bit excited.

It appeared Momoka shared her feelings, for her eyes startled to sparkle.

“I know just the place, but…” Bliss looked up at them apologetically. “It takes a lot of magic to create it and I used up most of mine summoning Kaede-sama, ~susu…”

“You can use magic?!” Momoka gasped, smiling wide. She seemed to have already forgotten about the secret base.

Bliss just looked confused. “Of course, ~susu…?” Their eyes suddenly widened in realization. “Do you mean you can’t, ~susu?!”

Momoka and Kaede stared at them incredulously. 

“Seems like we’ve still got a lot to talk about…” Kaede pointed out.

“I guess so, ~susu.”

“Why don’t you two come to my house?” Momoka suggested after the shock wore off. “We can talk and have some snacks too!”

At the mention of food, Bliss suddenly jumped on Momoka’s shoulder. “Sounds like a brilliant idea, ~susu!”

“I’m back!” Momoka announced as they entered her home.

“Excuse me…” Kaede hid behind her shyly, tightening her grip on Bliss, who was back to plushie mode. Momoka noticed this and offered one of her hands for her to hold. She hesitated, but decided to accept.

“Momoka, welcome back!” An elderly woman greeted her with a sweet smile. “Oh, what is this?” She adjusted her glasses at the sight of someone else. “Why, hello. I don’t believe we’ve met…?”

“Grandma, this is my new friend!” Momoka gave her hand a gentle squeeze as she spoke. “She’s here for vacation with her family!”

Her grandma laughed warmly. “I knew she was a new face. I may be old, but I haven’t gone senile just yet!”

Kaede appeared from behind her and bowed slightly. “I-I’m Kaede Arakawa. I apologize for intruding.”

“And so polite, too! Momoka, are you sure she is here of her own free will?” She joked, ruffling her granddaughter’s hair.

“Ha-ha, very funny, Grandma.” Momoka stuck her tongue out at her, to which she returned the gesture. “Where is Grandpa?”

“Right here.” An elderly man wearing a pink apron appeared on the doorway to what Kaede assumed was the kitchen. He spread his arms and Momoka ran to hug him, squealing as he started spinning her around.

After he settled her down, he turned to Kaede and gave her the same treatment. A squeak of surprise left her mouth and she couldn’t help but giggle. 

“I made cookies. Do you girls want some?” He offered with a friendly grin after she was safe back on the ground.

“Yay! Yes, please!” Momoka celebrated, then turned to her and stage-whispered: “Grandpa makes the best chocolate-chip cookies _ever_.”

“Flattery won’t get you extra cookies!” He called out as he was leaving (back to the kitchen, she presumed).

“Aw…”

They were chatting in Momoka’s room while stuffing themselves with cookies. They talked about anything and everything. About how Bliss knew next to nothing about humans as they used to live in a place where humans were only myths (Kaede had asked for more details, but they quickly changed the subject. As they looked so uncomfortable, the both of them decided to let it go for now), about Momoka’s home life (her parents had died in a car accident and her mother’s parents were her only other relatives. They dropped that subject quickly too) and about Kaede’s home life (nope. Subject dropped immediately).

But they talked about lighter things too. Bliss admitted that their sentence ender was a habit they couldn’t stop no matter how much they tried. And that their bag was a magical item that could store almost anything in it.

Momoka told them how she currently wanted to be a patisserie when she grew up, but also that her dream changed every week. She gushed to them about how much she loved sports and that she was captain of the track team at her school.

Kaede was beginning to tell them about some of the other stories she wrote when suddenly:

“Wait, ~susu!” Bliss exclaimed, shutting her up immediately. They looked around with a worried look on their face. “I sense an evil presence, ~susu.”

Kaede’s eyes widened. “Is it Lord Umbra?”

“Lord who-” Before Momoka could finish the question; Bliss pulled her face down where it was most accessible for them and covered her mouth with both of their paws.

After a long silence, Bliss finally said: “No, I don’t think so, ~susu. This aura is different than before, ~susu.”

A scream from the next room made Momoka stand up immediately. “Grandma! Grandpa!” She called out, but there was no response.

“Wait, Momoka-sama, it’s dange-”

But Momoka had already disappeared from sight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this far! 
> 
> I would really appreciate if you comment and/or leave kudos if you like the story!
> 
> Bye-bye~


	5. Chapter 5

The moment they caught up with her, their eyes saw something so frightening; no child should ever have to experience it.

There, on the floor, were Momoka’s grandparents, lifeless. She was there too, shaking their bodies in a vain attempt to wake them up as tears streamed down her cheeks.

“Please wake up…” She was begging, looking pained.

Kaede thought to scream for help, but Bliss made a gesture for her to be quiet before she could. They slowly approached the bodies with a solemn look on their face and reached out to intertwine the elderly woman’s fingers with theirs, closing their eyes. Bliss then started to radiate a warm light that lit up the entire room with a gold and silver glow.

After a while, they turned back to normal. With a shaky sigh, they shook their head.

Kaede wasn’t sure how, but she understood. Bliss had tried to use healing magic on her, but it didn’t work. Whether that was because their mana was still weak or because she couldn’t be saved, she didn’t know. She sincerely hoped for the former.

Before any of them could do anything else, Momoka’s grandparents started to stir. The three of them watched in shocked silence as they slowly got up, as if nothing had ever happened. Momoka was the first to snap out of it, hugging both of them as hard as she could. She gasped, however, when they did not return the hug, and instead pushed her away forcibly.

“Grandma…? Grandpa…?” It was obvious by her weak voice how hurt she was by their rejection.

They approached her without a word and just by the way they moved and the glassy look in their eyes Kaede could tell something was horribly wrong. “Watch out!” She warned Momoka way too late; for now her grandmother had her pinned against a wall and her grandfather had a hand squeezing her throat.

Kaede swiftly grabbed all her courage and jumped at them, intending to fire a punch against the old man, but he dodged just before she could hit him and grabbed her closed fist. He then twisted her arm, causing her to let out a shriek of pain. Luckily, in the time he was only paying attention to Kaede, Momoka was able to break free of her grandmother’s grip. Bliss just watched it all unfold, too powerless to do anything.

Now Momoka looked angry. “Get away from my friend!” She yelled with a battle cry, aiming a kick at her grandma’s shin with the purpose of making her lose her balance, but she was faster and caught her leg mid air. She swung her around before throwing her on the other side of the room.

“Momoka!” Kaede called out in distress, holding her injured arm to her chest.

“I’m alright.” She got up, gritting her teeth as tears gathered in her eyes once more. Wiping them with the back of her hand, she pointed at their opponents accusingly. “Who are you? You’re not my family, that’s for sure!”

Bliss’ mouth dropped open slightly as they had a sudden realization. “Hollow, ~susu.”

“Huh?” Momoka’s facial expression revealed her confusion.

Kaede snapped the fingers of her good hand, grasping what Bliss was alluding to. “They’re Hollows!” Seeing how Momoka looked even more confused, she decided to explain: “Hollows are what becomes of a human after they had their emotions stolen.”

“Stolen…? Does that mean they’ll go back to normal if we take back their emotions from whoever stole them?” Momoka inquired with a hopeful look in her eyes.

“Bingo, ~susu!” Bliss announced happily. However, their happiness did not last long. “But…”

“But?”

“Only a Pastel Charm has such an ability.” Kaede completed.

Momoka looked heartbroken at the news. But still, she recovered, determination shining in her pink eyes. “Then I’ll become one!”

Bliss and Kaede exchanged a look. “That would be great, but we don’t even know _how_ , ~susu.”

Except Kaede _did_ know how. Sure, the transformation item was different, but the concept should mostly be the same. She opened her mouth to share this information, but was cut off by someone grabbing her from behind. The Hollows, who had been alarmingly quiet for a long period of time, apparently waited for the perfect moment to point their enormous claws (that they definitely did _not_ have before) at her throat, slightly bruising her skin.

“Kaede-tan!”

“Kaede-sama!”

The once female Hollow let out a sinister chuckle, pressing harder on her neck to the point where it started to bleed. Kaede made a small whimper in pain.

Momoka clenched her fist, not daring to approach her in fear that they would decide to kill Kaede if she took another step forward. Bliss stood paralyzed at her side, afraid of moving just as much as her.

“I-I’m okay, guys.” Kaede tried to reassure them, but it was painfully obvious that she _wasn’t_ okay. “Don’t worry about me.”

Frustrated tears gathered at the corner of Momoka’s eyes. “I want to turn them back to normal. I want to save her.” She whispered to herself. She couldn’t bear to see her new friend in trouble right in front of her while she just stood there, gaping like an idiot.

“I want to.” She repeated over and over, her voice growing louder each time. “I want to!”

**“I want to become a Pastel Charm!”**

Suddenly, a ray of light came out of Bliss’ bandanna, a pink rainbow-like arrange of colors leading it directly into Momoka. She clutched something in her hands, that when the light dissipated was revealed to be one of the pocket watches. 

“Do it, ~susu!” Bliss encouraged. “Say the words that first come into your mind, ~susu!”

Momoka nodded with resolve.

**“Charming Makeover!”** She recited, winking at no one in particular. She opened the pocket watch and the hands started to move. **“Countdown: Start!”**

She closed her eyes as she felt herself start to float. She was now wearing a simple white dress. She felt herself get slightly taller. She gracefully ran her hands through her hair, causing it to slowly start turning into a pastel version of the original color. Whipped cream descended from the sky and she caught in her hands before it turned into small white gloves with pink bracelets on her wrists.

Melted chocolate appeared out of nowhere and started circling around her waist before solidifying and turning into a white and pink frilly dress. It started raining gummies, which turned into a pink bow on her chest, four small ones close to the hem of the dress, and a white one wrapped around her neck.

White and pink sprinkles were revealed to be in her hands. She blew softly on them and they started flying before finding their place in her hair and the bottom half of her dress. Meringue appeared and settled with the sprinkles in her dress to form reddish icing. Small fruits finished the outfit by making her long white boots. Her pocket watch was safely stored into a pocket hidden within her dress.

She opened her eyes and posed with her tongue sticking out. **“Protector of all things sweet, Sugar Charm!”**

Although she was happy she finally transformed, she was in a situation where she couldn’t be excited. She decided to save everyone first and celebrate later.

The Hollows let go of Kaede, startled. But they didn’t lose their composure for too long, because they then charged at Sugar Charm.

She dodged their attacks easily, jumping around as if she had been doing this for ages. With a flick of the wrist, a pink and white wand resembling an upside-down caramel apple appeared in her hands.

 **“Bubblegum Shield!”** She shouted. A pink magical circle appeared beneath her before a force field made entirely of bubblegum covered her and her friends.

The Hollows did not give up at the sight. On the contrary, they looked even more vicious. Without even pausing in their step, they attacked. They did not expect, however, to get stuck on the bubblegum.

The shield disappeared, leaving both Hollows on the ground, covered in sugar and incapable of moving.

 **“Pastel Purification!”** A pink glow enveloped the Hollows and then disappeared; leaving only what appeared to be glitter behind.

And just like that, Sugar Charm went back to being Momoka.

After de-transforming, she immediately ran to her grandparent’s side and shook their shoulders gently. This time, they reacted by slowly opening their eyes and looking around in confusion.

Momoka started bawling and hugged them as tight as her tired body would allow her. Despite still being disoriented, they returned the embrace just as tightly. Her grandmother even started to hum a lullaby in her ear. In a matter of minutes, she was asleep in their arms.

Kaede and Bliss watched from a distance.

“She did it, ~susu.” Bliss whispered in awe.

“She did it.” Kaede repeated with a watery smile.

Far away from the small house, someone laughed.

"They were defeated, huh?" A menacing grin took over their face. "This just started to get interesting..." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, we finally have our first Pastel Charm! Who will become one next? Stay tuned to find out! 
> 
> Thank you for reading~


	6. Chapter 6

It was going to be extremely hard for them to come up with a believable excuse as to what had occurred. Luckily, they didn’t have to. Bliss was revealed to be able to use a memory-erasing spell now that they had the power of a Pastel Charm on their side. It was a very weak version of the spell, but five seconds was all they needed for there to be no more questions. Momoka was hesitant to use magic on her grandparents, as she always used to tell them everything, but she was convinced after Bliss told her that them knowing would involve them in a battle they were most likely not ready for.

“This attack will definitely not be the last, ~susu.” Bliss had told them after they were alone again. “Are you prepared to fight for the sake of this world, ~susu?”

Momoka nodded firmly. “I am.”

“Are you nervous, ~susu?”

She looked like she was going to shake her head, but something about the look Bliss sent her seemed to change her mind. “I am.”

Bliss nodded with a proud smile. “Good, you should be, ~susu.” They placed both hands on their chest and closed their eyes. “One of your most important allies in your journey will be your emotions, ~susu. Make sure to never lose sight of them, ~susu.”

“Thank you for the advice, Bliss-sensei.” Despite her joking tone, Momoka looked as serious as Kaede had ever seen her.

“You’re welcome, ~susu!”

They smiled at each other. Kaede was glad they were getting along so well.

Bliss was deep in thought as they analyzed the door to Momoka’s closet. The two girls stared at them intently, hoping to understand what exactly they were looking for. After what felt like hours, Bliss finally finished their inspection.

“This will do, ~susu.” They beamed happily.

“Are you sure you can do this?” Kaede inquired in worry. “Is your magic strong enough now?”

Bliss puffed out their cheeks at the doubt in her voice. “Of course, ~susu! I may look weak, but I actually have the potential to become the strongest magician of all time, ~susu!”

“It’s the ‘potential’ part that scares me…” Kaede mumbled to herself.

They heard her anyway. “It’s going to be fine, ~susu! Did you forget that, because of my healing powers, your arm is as good as new, ~susu?” They gestured to her mentioned member and, to prove it, gave it a small tug. Kaede winced in pain and recoiled slightly. Bliss grimaced and muttered an apology. “W-Well, almost, ~susu... But anyways! It’s going to fine, ~susu!”

Momoka, who had been unusually quiet until now, voiced her opinion: “Don’t worry, Kaede-tan!” She grinned as she showed off her pocket watch. “Bliss-tan will be doing this borrowing my powers, and as you recently witnessed, I’m super strong!”

Kaede relaxed at the reassurance, chuckling slightly. “I guess you’re right.”

Bliss cleared their throat, not one bit upset that Kaede trusted Momoka’s power more than theirs. “Now that we are on the same page, please take a few steps back, ~susu.”

Kaede did as she was told. She did even more, backing up until her back was against the wall. Considering this was magic, she could never be too careful.

“Now, Momoka-sama, please transform, ~susu.”

Momoka smiled, nodding in understanding. **“Charming Makeover! Countdown: Start!”** Kaede had to cover her eyes as the amount of energy released made everything way too bright. As the light started to disappear and the smoke cleared, there stood Sugar Charm.

She approached Bliss and knelt down to their level before taking one of their hands and closing her eyes. They did the same. A magic circle formed beneath them as they started to glow their respective colors.

Faster than she expected, the light dispersed and then was no more. In the blink of an eye, Momoka was back to her usual self. She looked a little tired, but that was nothing compared to how Bliss looked.

“It’s ready, ~susu. Now all you have to do is th-” They collapsed on the floor before they could finish their sentence.

“Bliss!” Kaede ran to their side and picked them up in her arms. “Bliss? Bliss, are you okay?”

Bliss opened their eyes with a worn out smile, layers of sweat wetting their forehead. “I-I’m fine, ~susu.” They averted their gaze elsewhere. “Maybe I should have waited longer to use such a powerful spell, ~susu.” They chuckled embarrassedly.

Kaede wanted to be mad so badly, but all she managed to do was sigh. “Let’s get you some place to rest.”

“I can still-”

She glared at them, successfully shutting them up. “Now, how do we open the magic door?”

“You just have to say the magic words, ~susu.”

Momoka lifted her hand and waved it in the air excitedly. “Can I do it? Can I do it?”

Bliss nodded **.** “Sure, the magic wor-”

“Open sesame, right?” She announced proudly.

Instead of amazed, like Momoka expected, they just looked confused. “No. Why would you think that, ~susu?”

Kaede hid her giggles behind her hand as Momoka pouted. “Never mind.”

Bliss shrugged. Kaede lifted them up close to Momoka’s ear so they could whisper the _real_ words to her.

She turned to the closet, still mumbling about how much better her words were. She did a little twirl and pointed at the door dramatically. “By Charmaine-sama’s will, I request that the passage be unlocked.” She then reached out and opened it.

Instead of seeing a small space with Momoka’s selection of clothes like Kaede expected, they were faced with a colorful room. It had a big glass oval-shaped table with five chairs, each a different color, in its middle. Hanging just above the table was a beautiful white chandelier. Off to the side there were a few, also color-coded, beanbags. A fluffy rainbow carpet covered the floor of the entire room and there no windows to speak of. There was a white with a few golden details grandfather’s clock that seemed to not be working, for its hands were still.

But what surprise her most was the fact the place seemed like it had been used recently. There were a few snacks and half-empty glasses of juice on top of the table. A large amount of video games lay on the floor beside the beanbags. There was a small orange stain on the carpet.

“Bliss?” Kaede murmured hesitantly, as if the answers would run away if she spoke too loudly.

They hummed in response as they stared at the room with an unreadable expression.

“Didn’t you say this room was generated especially for us?”

Silence.

“Bliss?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah…” They said, still looking distracted. “That was supposed to be the case, ~susu.”

Before she could ask them to clarify, Momoka called out to them.

“Guys, come here!” Somehow she had entered the room and thrown herself in a beanbag without either of them noticing. “This is really comfy!”

Bliss finally snapped out of it. “Momoka-sama, wait, ~susu!” Their voice was laced with worry. “Before we find out what happened here, it’s best if we leave, ~susu!”

“Don’t be such a scaredy-cat!” She teased, adjusting her seat to make herself more comfortable. “Whoever was here just had a snack and played some videogames. Nothing to worry about!”

Bliss looked at Kaede for back up, but she gave them an apologetic smile. “Both of us need a place to stay, Bliss.” She entered the room, walked up to Momoka, and settled them in a beanbag beside her. “You used a lot of magic to bring us here; don’t you think we should make the most of it?”

Bliss took a deep breath, relaxing into the cushions. “Just be sure to stay alert for any intruders, okay, ~susu?”

“Deal.”

They fell asleep soon after.

Momoka and Kaede spent a few more hours chatting in whispers while Bliss was softly snoring beside them. It was starting to get late, so Kaede decided it was time to bid her friend and her grandparents goodnight. Momoka tried asking them to let her spend the night, but they wanted to speak to her parents first. She came up with a believable enough excuse as to why she couldn’t contact them, but that meant she had to sleep somewhere else.

And so, carrying Bliss in her arms, she left the house.

She just needed to find an unlocked door so she could enter her new home again. Thinking back to it, the room Bliss and Momoka had created with their combined magic was definitely impressive. To be able to arrive at the same place just by opening any door in the world whist saying the magic words was something she never dreamed she would get to experience in her life.

But to be honest, none of the things that happened that day were something she imagined could happen in real life. In the span of twenty four hours, she have woken up in a strange world that housed some of the characters she created in her comics, made her first friend in a while (and that friend just happened to be a magical creature), learned she was the key to saving this world, met the main character of her story and became friends with her too, watched as she transformed into a magical girl for the first time right before her eyes, and accepted a mysterious room as her temporary home.

While deep in thought, she finally stumbled upon an open convenience store. As the tired-looking teenager employee was helping another late-night customer, she quickly said the magic words and passed through the door again. But this time, instead of walking out of the store, she was led back into the magical room.

With no pajamas to put on, she yawned as she curled up her body as to fit in a single beanbag, hugging Bliss into her chest.

“Good night.”

She couldn’t wait to see what tomorrow would bring.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again everyone! Thank you for reading! This chapter has a lot of dialogue, I hope you don't mind. 
> 
> See you~


	7. Chapter 7

_Everything was white._

_No matter where she looked. In every direction she searched. White._

_She tried to speak, but her voice wouldn’t come out._

_She tried to move, but her feet refused to leave the ground._

_In the distance, she saw two silhouettes getting closer. And closer. And closer. And closer._

_She was afraid._

_They were finally close enough that she could recognize them._

_Sugar Charm was walking towards her. Bliss was floating by her side._

_She was relieved._

_They were here to help her. As soon as they arrived, she wouldn’t be alone anymore._

_They walked slowly._

_Time passed. They weren’t getting any closer._

_They looked distressed._

_If she could talk, she would lie._

_She would lie and say she was going to be okay._

_Would they believe her?_

_She knew her time was up._

_Her body hurt. She couldn’t see as clearly._

_She wanted to speak. She wanted to thank them for trying._

_She wanted to hug them one more time._

_Through her blurry eyes, she could see them running._

_Running towards her._

_Multiple voices were calling her name._

_She smiled as she fell asleep._

_Everything was black._

Kaede woke up with a jolt, hitting her head on something. She hissed, and she heard a familiar voice simultaneously give a pained yelp. She opened her eyes just to see Bliss standing on her stomach, rubbing their head.

“B-Bliss?” She got up slowly as to not make them fall. “I’m sorry! Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, ~susu.” They locked eyes with her, looking worried. “Are _you_ okay, ~susu?”

She gave them a confused look. “I’m fine. Why?”

They gently wiped the tears under her eyes and then showed her their wet paw.

Wait. Tears?

She reached out and… Oh. She was indeed crying. Huh.

“Did you have a nightmare, ~susu?” They asked. She nodded in response. “You can talk to me about it if you want to, ~susu.”

She briefly considered it. On one hand, she really wanted to vent to someone about it, but on the other, she really didn’t want to recall what happened in her dream. She eventually shook her head at the offer.

“Thank you, but I barely remember what happened.” She lied. Bliss didn’t seem convinced, but didn’t press it.

They had breakfast at a café close to Momoka’s house. While they ate, they chatted about various things. Although mostly Momoka talked, Kaede was slowly learning how to keep up with her. Bliss hid in Kaede’s backpack and she would discreetly give them food from time to time. 

Somehow, the topic landed at school.

“You must really miss it.” Momoka mused through a mouthful of donuts. Bliss scolded her quietly about ‘manners’. “I can’t even bear to imagine what it would be like not to see my classmates every day.”

‘I don’t really miss it.’ Kaede wanted to say, but settled for an awkward laugh instead.

A moment of silence passed until suddenly, Momoka let out a loud gasp.

“You should come to my school!” She clapped her hands excitedly. “I can’t wait to introduce you to everyone!” At the nervous look Kaede gave her, she continued: “Don’t worry, they’re all super nice!”

Kaede scratched the back of her head, averting her gaze. “I don’t know…”

“Please?”

She quickly came up with an excuse: “B-But my dad isn’t here to sign any papers, you know?”

Momoka waved her hand around in dismissal. “Don’t worry! The principal is really chill, I bet if we ask nicely she’ll let you spend a week or two at the school as a guest!”

“B-But I don’t have a uniform…” She tried again, quieter this time.

“You can borrow one of mine!” Momoka took her hands in hers and looked deeply into her eyes. “Please? I’ll make sure to make it really fun.”

Kaede flushed bright red at the closeness. Before she could think up another reason not to go, Bliss chimed in:

“I think you should go, ~susu.” They crossed their arms. “It’s really important for you to continue with your studies, even if you are on a mission, ~susu.”

She looked back and forth between them. One was giving her a stern look, while the other was tempting her with puppy-dog eyes.

She finally sighed in defeat. “Okay.”

“Yay!” Momoka celebrated, running to give her a tight hug. “I’m sure they’ll love you a lot!”

‘Hopefully…’ Kaede thought.

“Speaking of…” Bliss interrupted softly. “…Your class starts at eight o’clock, right, ~susu?”

Momoka nodded absentmindedly, not really paying attention.

“If that’s the case, we have five minutes to get there, ~susu.” They said, gesturing to a clock on the wall beside them.

“Yeah, okay.” She nodded again. Then paused. Then backpedaled. “Wait, huh?!”

She stood outside the classroom door, still heaving for breath.

They had managed to arrive right on time, but not without a price. Kaede felt as if something was pressing heavily on her chest, making it difficult for her to breathe properly. Sweat was running down her forehead no matter how many times she wiped it. Although, that could be just her nerves. 

Momoka had somehow convinced the principal to let her attend classes in that small span of time, and she could only guess how she managed such a feat. Sure, it was a public school, but she didn’t think random kids could just walk in there without their parents and start taking classes. Right…? But to be honest, the whole village wasn’t what she’d consider ‘normal’, so maybe that was the way things worked there. Or alternatively, Momoka was just that good at convincing people to do her bidding.

“Please come in, Arakawa-san.” She snapped out of that train of thought the moment she heard those muffled words through the door.

“Y-Yes, ma’am!” She called out as loud as she could, but ended up only making a squeaking noise.

She opened the door to the classroom and marched towards the teacher’s side, arms glued to her side and stiff as a board. She faced her new classmates for about a millisecond before giving up and dropping her gaze to the ground.

Her new teacher cleared her throat. “You may introduce yourself.”

Oh. Right! She had forgotten she had to say something. Instead of beating herself over it, she pushed her mistake aside and tried to come up with something interesting to say about herself. “I-I’m Kaede Arakawa and I, um…” She started to panic. Nothing that came to mind seemed important enough to mention. Was she that boring of a person?

“Do you have any hobbies, Arakawa-san?” The angel of a teacher asked, giving her a metaphorical push in the right direction.

“I like to draw… sometimes…” She answered, her voice growing quieter with each word she spoke.

“An artist, right? That sounds wonderful.” The teacher turned to her other students. “Does anyone have any questions for your new classmate?”

Kaede slowly lifted her gaze to look at the rest of the class and watched as a few people raised their hands. The teacher pointed to a short boy with black hair and he slowly got up and looked at her. She did her best to maintain eye contact.

“What’s your favorite color?”

The whole class, including the teacher, groaned in unison.

“C’mon, Daisuke!” Another boy complained loudly.

“I-I like pink.” She mustered the courage to respond. The boy, Daisuke, nodded seriously. 

“Pink, huh?” He sat back down, stroking his chin and appearing to be deep in thought. “Interesting choice.”

The teacher rubbed her temples, looking like she was ready for the day to end already. “Anyone else?”

This time, she chose a dark-skinned boy with purple hair and eyes.

He appeared not to like all the attention suddenly on him, which she could deeply relate to. “Uh… Favorite kind of dessert?”

“I really like pudding.” She answered, feeling slightly more relaxed. “But pancakes are really good, too.” She added as an afterthought.

“What about you, Miyake-san? Any questions?” The teacher basically pleaded. ‘Please ask something interesting’ was radiant off her in waves.

The addressed girl stood up and Kaede recognized her immediately. Long curly green hair and slightly darker green eyes. Big sister aura. Mao Miyake. One of the main girls of her story. Without really starting her search for more Pastel Charms, she had found one!

Mao cleared her throat, giving her a polite smile. “Where are you from?”

She froze.

Oh no.

That was the question she should have been prepared for but wasn’t. 

What would she say?

‘Yeah, actually I’m from another world where you are just a story character I created and whose life I control. And the only reason I’m here is because another character I also created decided it was a perfectly good idea to summon me here to help them look for the legendary warriors who will save this world from imminent destruction which by the way you are also a part of. Any further questions?’

Yeah, no.

“She’s from America!” A familiar voice answered for her.

In the midst of her panic, she had forgotten Momoka was in the classroom with her.

But in that moment, she would be happier if she wasn’t. Not only was her friend a terrible liar, she was also bad at coming up with anything under pressure.

And because of that, Kaede was now in a deeper hole than she was before.

“Woah! Really?”

“That’s awesome!”

“Where in America do you live?”

“Does that mean you can speak English?”

Yup. She was sure of it now.

She was screwed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again! It looks like that, even in another world, Kaede can't escape from school, huh? 
> 
> Thank you for reading and have a nice weekend!


	8. Chapter 8

“Alright, alright.” The teacher came to her rescue, clapping her hands together to get the class’ attention. “I’m sure Arakawa-san must be overwhelmed with all of these questions. Why don’t you wait until lunch break to get to know her a bit better?”

The whole class ‘aw’d in response. 

“You may sit next to Hamasaki-san.” She whispered to her with a wink.

“Thank you.” She answered quietly, and no words could describe how thankful she was in that moment. Unknowingly, the teacher had saved her from getting into a big mess.

She made her way to the only vacant seat at the back of her class, just beside Momoka. But as she sat down, a strange sound, similar to that of flatulence, echoed throughout the classroom.

She stiffened, horrified. That was definitely _not_ her, but it sure wouldn’t look that way for her classmates. She shut her eyes tightly, expecting the laughter to begin.

But it was dead quiet.

She slowly opened one of her eyes to look around, only to realize that all eyes were, in fact, not on her, but instead at a student at the other end of the classroom. The sky blue-haired girl was snickering to herself, looking like she was having the time of her life.

“How childish.” The student in front of her, a braided purple-haired girl with glasses, scoffed.

“Seriously, Setsuko?” Another girl asked, perplexed.

So her name was Setsuko… Why did that sound so familiar…?

…

…

…

Oh! _That’s_ why! The girl laughing was Setsuko Ikeda, also one of the protagonists of her story!

As she realized this, another thing came to mind. Setsuko was better known for being a prankster. And that meant…

She slowly got up and her suspicions were proven to be correct. There, in her seat, was the offensive item. A whoopee cushion.

The situation was so incredibly bizarre, she couldn’t help but laugh. Setsuko’s eyes seemed to twinkle with happiness as a proud grin took over her face at the sound.

Her classmates, noticing she didn’t seem bothered or upset by the harmless prank, laughed too. Well, some did. The purple haired girl from earlier, who Kaede realized to be Suzume Miki from her story as well, simply rolled her eyes.

She searched with her eyes around the room, and they landed on the final future-Pastel Charm, Chinami Kamiya, who was smiling in amusement. With this, all of the heroines were accounted for. She mentally gave herself a pat in the back for finding them all, even though, in such a small village, it was bound to happen sooner or later.

Now all that was left for her mission was to convince the four girls to fight for their world.

When lunch break finally came, Kaede was immediately surrounded by people. Her classmates would ask question after question about what she thought were just mundane things about her life, but for some reason they seemed interested in every little thing about her. Whenever the topic of where she came from would reemerge, she and Momoka would do their best to smoothly change the subject. It wasn’t that she was particularly bad at English, but she was certainly not good enough to speak fluently like the other students assumed she could.

As they made their way to the rooftop, where they had decided to eat, a scream pierced through the air. The conversations going on around them ceased immediately as everyone started looking around for the source.

“There!” One student pointed in the general direction of the school’s entrance. As Kaede approached the fences around the roof to get a better look, she saw the reason for such panic.

Running around the school grounds was her new teacher. But there was something wrong about her. She was chasing students around, occasionally materializing spheres of dark energy in her hands and aiming them at whoever approached her. The people that were hit with the sphere would collapse on the ground, unconscious.

There was no doubt about it. They were looking at a Hollow.

As she turned to look at Momoka, she instead only caught a glimpse of her as she bolted towards the stairs. “Masuda-sensei!” She called out desperately.

Kaede was about to follow her when someone caught her wrist.

“Stay here.” Mao tried to look authoritative, but she noticed how her voice trembled slightly. “I don’t know what’s going on, but it seems like a bad idea to go out there right now.”

She shook her head, breaking free of her purposely weak grasp. “Don’t worry, everything will be okay.” She tried her best to sound reassuring. She turned to her other classmates and smiled before running in the direction Momoka had left.

She caught up with her right on the track field, where the Hollow was now approaching each of the knocked out students and placing its hand on their chest. After a few seconds, their skin would turn extremely pale, and Kaede could only guess it was sucking their energy right out of their bodies.

“Is there anyone around?” Momoka asked once she arrived, expression serious.

Kaede shook her head. “Everyone is either passed out or too far away to see you.”

“Good.” Momoka then took her watch out of her pocket. **“Charming Makeover!”**

And in a second she was Sugar Charm once again.

The overwhelming light of the transformation caught the attention of the Hollow. It let out a dry roar, charging in her direction. She jumped, twirling in the air and successfully avoiding the attack.

Before she could make her move against the creature, Bliss had left their hiding spot inside Kaede's backpack in their classroom and was running towards them at full speed. “Sugar, behind you!”

Sugar Charm dodged just as someone charged a bright beam in her direction. She looked around for the source and found it: A human man, perhaps in his late fifties or early sixties, was floating in the air above them, wearing a strange black outfit. He had his arms crossed with a neutral expression, watching her silently.

“Bliss, is that another Hollow?” Kaede asked in a frightened whisper.

They hummed in thought before shaking their head. “Their auras are similar, but different, ~susu.”

**“Marshmallow Trampoline!”** Sugar shouted as a magic circle created a giant marshmallow beneath her, which she used to jump until she was as close to the man as she could get. “Who are you and why did you attack me?”

The strange man remained silent, only moving to send another attack in her direction. This time, it hit directly on her head and plunged her to the ground. Luckily her magic from earlier cushioned her fall before disappearing, but she was still heavily injured.

Kaede and Bliss called out her name simultaneously, rushing to her side. Before they could reach her, however, a sticky pinkish wall blocked their path just as another wave of energy was on its way to hit them. They looked at their friend in shock, just to see her pointing her magical weapon at them.

“Don’t come any closer!” She commanded, trying to look tough, when in actuality there were tears at the corners of her eyes. “I can’t promise I’ll be able to protect you!”

“Momoka…” Kaede said in a broken murmur, complying and taking a few steps back. 

Before any of them could notice, the Hollow decided it was the perfect time to attack. It shot a powerful beam in Sugar’s direction, not giving her any time to think, let alone dodge. While she was on the ground recovering, the strange man teleported behind her before trapping her in a headlock. He then sent a terrifying glare in Bliss’ direction.

“You would force someone so young and inexperienced to fight?” He asked with a voice so deep it felt like it was piercing their heads with each syllable.

Bliss _did_ look concerned for Sugar’s safety, but most of all they looked confused. “I’m not forcing her, ~susu.”

The man now had an outraged expression on his face. “She is a child.” He spoke slowly, as if trying to explain something to a naïve kindergartener.”Although she looks older in this form, you cannot fool me.”

Bliss’ eyes widened as they glanced back and forth between the two girls, looking for confirmation.

Kaede grimaced, slowly nodding.

“Well, technically we are pre-teens.” Sugar chimed in nervously, not helping the situation at all.

Before Bliss could have any kind of reaction, the man tightened the grip he had on Sugar. “If I wanted to, I could snap her neck right now and there would be nothing you could do to stop me.” He laughed humorlessly. “Isn’t that pathetic for a full-grown Guardian such as yourself?” Giving Bliss no time to retort, he continued: “You’re lucky I am feeling merciful today.”

And with those words, he disappeared back to where he came from.

The moment he left, the Hollow, who had been quietly observing, charged at them once again. Sugar Charm sidestepped slightly to the side, easily avoiding it. **“Pastel Purification!”** She said without an ounce of her usual enthusiasm.

And just like that their teacher was back to normal. Kaede caught her before she could hit the ground and gently settled her down.

“Do you know him?” Momoka asked out of the blue once her transformation dissipated.

Kaede only shook her head, concern showing clearly on her features. She was about to ask if she was okay, but stopped herself. That was a stupid question.

She glanced to the side just to see Bliss standing there, clenching their fists.

“Bliss…?”

They took a deep breath and then faced Momoka.

“Give me your pocket watch, ~susu.” When the only thing Momoka did was look at them in confusion, Bliss’ expression hardened. “You’re not fighting anymore, ~susu.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading once again~
> 
> I hope you all had a good Christmas!


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